


Phantom Pains and Healing Beams

by Bemused_Illusionist



Category: Half-Life VR but the AI is Self-Aware - Fandom
Genre: Domestic Fluff, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Mild Gore, Mild Language, Multi, Post-Canon, They/Them Pronouns for Benrey (Half-Life), amputee gordon freeman, phantom pains, tag is for blood
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-16
Updated: 2020-10-16
Packaged: 2021-03-08 23:27:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 763
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27044986
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bemused_Illusionist/pseuds/Bemused_Illusionist
Summary: Gordon experiences phantom pains in his arm for the first time and is stubborn about calling for help.
Relationships: Benrey/Gordon Freeman
Comments: 2
Kudos: 116





	Phantom Pains and Healing Beams

Gordon had heard of phantom pains before. When people lost a limb, they sometimes would feel as if it were still there, even if they were wearing a prosthetic. The pain could range from a slight twinge up to a searing agony. He had heard stories from other amputees about it, but had never experienced it for himself. Until now.

“God damn it! Fuck, that burns!” Gordon yelled, ripping off his prosthetic arm and chucking it at the wall. He was working from home for the day, and all was quiet until his arm had started acting up. At first it was a dull sensation, easy enough to ignore. Now, it felt like someone was pushing red-hot rebar into his skin - from the inside. He quickly saved his work and shut the computer off before rushing to the fridge, sticking his arm into the ice drawer.

Unfortunately, that did nothing to help. Gordon yelled in frustration, scratching at the nub in a desperate, last-ditch attempt to phase through the pain. He sunk to the floor as he scratched at the skin, eventually drawing blood from his arm. Tears pricked at his eyes as he slammed his good fist against the floor, curling up into a tight ball. “Fetal position, this’ll be over soon Gordon, you’re not gonna die… right?”

Gordon sat back up, managing to crawl over to the couch. He scratched at his arm a little more, whining in pain as he tried to calm down. His arm had never hurt like this before. Was something irritating it? Or… he shut his eyes, barely able to think about anything other than the pain. He should tell someone... No, no, he could handle it. He dealt with getting his arm cut off in the first place, he could deal with this.

Around that time, Benrey had just come home from Gamestop. They walked over to Gordon after locking the door, glancing at the blood dripping from the kitchenette floor to the couch where Gordon sat. They cocked their head to the side, stating, “Yo, what’s up bro? Why… why’s your arm like that? Did, did you do that?”

“Hey, bud… yeah, just had some problems with my arm, y’know, not being there,” Gordon replied, wincing as he clutched his arm to his chest. Benrey sat down next to him, staring intensely at the scratches on his arm. Suddenly, they grabbed Gordon’s arm, moving it into their lap. Gordon tried to pull away, but their grip was too strong for him to wrench his arm back.

They ran their hands over the scratches, their fingers cool against Gordon’s burning skin. Soft balls of tealish green floated from their mouth, wrapping around his arm as well. His skin was starting to cool down, and Benrey’s soft touch was comforting. He leaned back into the couch as they worked, watching as the sweet voice healed some of the deeper scratches. 

“So uh… why were you scratchin’ at your arm? You got pretty deep there, even drew some, uh, blood,” Benrey questioned, resting their hand on his quickly healing stump. Gordon rubbed his good hand against the back of his neck, a few beads of sweat running down from his temple. “I was doing fine this morning, but then all of a sudden my arm started acting up. It felt like someone was holding a white-hot piece of metal to it.”

His partner let his arm drop, their hands moving under their chin in thought. After a few moments, they spoke up, replying, “Well, maybe it was those… those phantom pains you told me about. Y’know, where it feels like the limb is still there.” He nodded, shifting under their gaze. They paused before continuing, “If you needed some help you could have called me. I help all the time with stuff like this.”

“I know, I know… I just didn’t want to be a burden, y’know? I should be able to handle this myself,” Gordon confessed, looking away and out the window out of instinct. Benrey sighed, resting their hand on his leg. They moved Gordon’s face to meet theirs again, cupping his cheek gently. “It’s OK if you need help, Gordo. It doesn’t mean you’re a failure. If, if anything, it proves you’re strong for knowing when you need a helping hand.”

Gordon leaned into their touch, smiling softly. Benrey was right. He felt awful now that he hadn’t told them right away, but now that they were here, it didn’t matter. What mattered was that he was OK now, thanks to his loving partner.

**Author's Note:**

> HLVRAI Gordon is a lot more stubborn than I remember. Oh well, mood i guess


End file.
